gejohesch

I agree. It's not the finished floor yet, it's only the "rough part" of it (and don't mind the mess around, I will clean up once it's all done!). It's just up to the level +/- half a cm about. I still have to pour a last layer to smooth it out.

Good suggestion, I guess I could have organised that with a little bit of effort (searching, inquiring etc). That being said, I always enjoyed a bit of a challenge. In this case, a bit of an engineering challenge!

I have non-slip tiles indeed! And I plan to use these plastic "auto-levelers" too! Already bought them. The only thing that worries me is that one has to work quite fast as the tile adhesive sets in within 10-15 minutes already.

See the pic showing how I'm leveling the ground. I'm sure the "pros" will have a lot to say about my "method" but here I am, I'm not a pro. As the surface is quite large, I built a series a ridges to the desired level and then filled in between. Where deep enough, I used blocks, red bricks and gross gravel to fill in as much space as possible before pouring in the mortar made from cement + sand + finer gravel. I know one could set up wooden planks by the sides to the desired level, but the ground was already hard cement so I could not do that. I've checked the link to the "Crocodile" brand, very useful, thanks!

Yes thanks, indeed I use plastic spacers, I really don't see why I should not, it's cheap enough. Saying that because I've seen the local handymen using matchsticks..... As a reply to the ones who contributed above (thanks to them again!), I remember seeing a woman laying down tiles in Phairath, big shop close to the airport in Khon Kaen, and she was very impressive, so yes of course there are excellent tilers I'm sure in Thailand - that's just not what I've seen done in the village..... Also, all these comments about using cement.... maybe, but there must be a good reason why special tile mortar is made, and I have seen enough not to automatically take the "Thai way of doing things" as an example to follow!

I'm about to embark tiling an outdoor (but covered) surface in my wife's place, about 40-50 square metres. I've got the tiles already, they are 45 x 45 cm (8 by 8 inches). I'm hesitant when I see the range of tile adhesive (thin set / mortar) available in Home Pro. Just looking at the "Crocodile" brand, it starts at 135 baht the bag of 20 kg (Yellow), then goes on to 160 baht for Blue, 198 baht for green and so on. The shop attendant said the yellow brand (the cheapest) is good enough for me with such tiles, but I prefer to double check : anyone with good advice on that? I never put tiles on a surface, I mean on the ground. My only experience is with tiles (30 x 30 cm) on a wall, that worked very well. It takes a bit of trial and error but after a dozen tiles or so, I felt more comfortable. Also, putting in the joint mortar later on was straightforward enough. I invested in a tile cutter, that also worked very well. On the basis of that experience, I decided to tile up that outdoor surface I mentioned above (it's a covered kitchen area) but this time it's on the ground. The ground was not horizontal, far from it, therefore I am in the process of levelling it up (before setting the tiles on it). That I find is a lot of work and a bit tricky, but I'm more than half the way through I think. One may ask why I'm not getting all that work done by local workers. The thing is, I have multiple examples in my wife's place of doors, windows, walls etc not being straight, not being vertical, nor horizontal, nor parallel nor at square angles. Thai workers seem to have a rather dim understanding of basic geometry..... Therefore, I prefer to do the job myself. Yes, it's much slower, but I have plenty of time and at least I know what I'm doing (to a point, hahaha!). Again, any words of wisdom on the subject of the tile adhesive, and any other stuff relates to tiling, will be most appreciated!

Thanks, that's also useful. I guess to go spend a week-end in Vientiane and then back to Thailand will be easy for my wife then. Myself, that will give me a new 30-days "breath of life" in Thailand when re-entering!

Thanks, that's useful. I knew the French used to be possessed 555!

Hi! Not sure this is the correct forum for my question. I'm considering crossing from Nong Khai to Vientiane in a few months, my wife (Thai) driving her car (registered in Thailand). Is that possible? Are there any formalities when crossing the border - and back? While I'm at it, I have another question. My wife may have her passport kept in a foreign embassy, with an ongoing visa application, at the time of our planned little trip to Vientiane. Will she be allowed to travel to Laos with her Thailand national card (bat prachachon)? Thanks for answers!

Great, thanks! I see a few products for joints of 5 mms with Weber!

I did a bit of reading and lots of people who seem to know what they're talking about strongly recommend not to make a mix myself, as that would throw off the aggregate - cement proportion of the initial product. Seems manufacturers have good reasons to make the mixes they market out with very specific proportions.

Yes, I understand that, thanks! Hence my question : do I find sanded grout easily in Thailand? I will check with Home Pro, Pairat also in Khon Kaen.... Just that I would like to be reassured before getting back to Thailand!

Hello! I have a largish (ca 50 sq m) floor surface to tile. I already have bought the tiles 45 x 45 cm. A small section has already been tiled years ago with similar tiles, the spacing between tiles is 4-5mm i.e. 1/6 - 1/5 inch. It's not perfectly regular as it was done by a local worker (typical "village-type" work!). , I don't want the new tiling to clash too much with the old one, so I'm opting for a spacing of 5 mm for my own work. Now, the question is : which grout mortar am I going to use? Reading on the net, I hear loud and clear that for anything larger than 1/8 inch = 3 mm I should definitely use sanded grout. I have tiled a wall in the past with 2mm spacing with grout bought in a Dinasty Tiles shop, I'm 100% certain that was unsanded grout, it worked perfect. However, I'm not sure the shop has sanded grout. I cannot check because I'm outside Thailand just now. Can anyone reassure me that Dinasty (or another shop) also has sanded grout? My question may sound stupid, but I just read that "I was in India a few years back and they ONLY sell unsanded grout there". One never knows...

Thanks. It's good to bring back focus on the question at hand. I find all too often that discussions on this site diverge a bit too much. Everyone likes to bring in his story - that would better be discussed in another discussion to avoid confusing all sorts of issues in this present discussion.

Last 2 times I went to Thailand - with Emirates from Europe, via Dubai: - november 2022 to march 2023: I obtained the e-visa, TR option, with no problem even though the return flight was over 3 months after entry to Thailand. - april - may 2023: on the visa exemption basis. No question asked at check-in - but I had been asked by airlines at least twice in years past for "proof of onward ticket". So I was prepared, I had a "throw-away" flight booked to Siem Reap. Money wasted since the airline (Emirates) did not ask anything at check-in. So two comments: - check-in experiences re. onward flight vary when traveling on the visa exemption basis. - e-visa application indeed requires a return flight booked, but that return flight can be booked beyond the 60 days TR period, no problem - at least that's my experience. And of course: no one ever asked about onward flights when passing immigration in Bangkok (I flew in countless times over the years). Nearly needless to mention that as it is the experience of 90-99% people I think.

Thanks, that confirms what I thought.

I'm sure this question has been asked before, but please kindly accommodate me! I already booked my flights : to Thailand in mid August + return to Europe end of October. That's a total stay of 75 days. My original plan was to enter Thailand on the visa exemption basis, fly out after 30 days and spend 2-3 weeks somewhere else in SE Asia or India, then return to Thailand again on the visa exemption basis for another period of 30 days - and finally return to Europe end of October. As I'm revisiting my plan, I now think I would rather apply for a TR visa, which allows for a 60 days stay, and go to immigration to get a 30 days extension (1900 THB, I've done that in a previous visit). With the extension, I will be allowed to stay until early November, which is more than I need since I will leave end of October - no problem with that. My concern now is how the airline will handle me at check-in when departing from Europe in August. With a TR visa =60 days but my return flight booked 75 days after arrival in Thailand, will the airline make a problem? I would rather like to avoid booking a "throw-away" flight out of Thailand to match the 60 days TR visa period, just to satisfy the airline. I've done that in a previous visit - no one asked me anything - I know it's not that costly, maybe some 50 EUR about, but extra costs keep adding up....

That's very much my experience, especially "those who confidently tell you exactly the wrong information". I will add "those who confidently tell you to take the largest and most expensive option, whatever your needs". And that's also true for other than DYI items.

Good points, makes sense. I think I have a better idea now re. the dimensions of that "slightly elevated surface" required to correctly accommodate the tiles and the nosing. It will be rather like my second drawing then. Thanks. Note that 1) my drawing is obviously a bit simplified; 2) the idea of slotting the riser tile into that "highlighted area" was given to me by the attendant I asked in Global House. But granted, a) no one (nearly ever) speaks 3 words of english around where I am; b) my technical thai is a bit limited; c) many attendants don't really know a lot anyway!

My drawing is just a drawing - it's maybe a bit simplified! Looking at the pic you sent, and taking note of your comments, my understanding is that you suggest to place the tiles as shown on my revised drawing here. I marked with red stars the joints between the nosing and the tiles, with some thin set showing up (as per your pic). However, it seems to me that the nosing has such an obvious little place for the riser tile to fit in, and, true, the vertical part of the nosing would then protrude but that would just be by a few mm, I wonder if that would really be a trip hasard? I can understand the trip hasard with the horizontal (flat) part, the one that links to the tread.

I hope my "title" is clear (english is not my first language). Here is my current project: - just outside my wife's house in Isan, there is nice covered place which I want to arrange as an outdoors kitchen and sitting area; - My idea is to tile the floor to give it a better look and feel than just drab cement; - There is a slightly elevated surface which I think will be ideal to place kitchen furniture, coking stove, what have you; the step up is about 10 cm but I can arrange a bit more if necessary; - As I want to place a safety rail, or nosing, or strip (I may confuse the terms here and there....), my problem is to decide how wide I have to make that elevated surface to accommodate the tiles without having to cut some. I already have the tiles, they are 45 x 45 cm. That depends on how exactly the horizontal and vertical tiles (tread and riser) will fit with the nosing. I see lots of options in Home Pro and Global House, the first jpeg is an example from Home Pro. - My understanding is that the tiles will fit as I have roughly depicted on the 2nd jpeg. If that is correct, there will be a spacing of a few cms between the tile edges (tread and riser, respectively). It may sound like a lot, maybe a 2, 3 or 4 cms, but that will have to be taken into account to avoid having to cut tiles. I'm sure this is a very basic question! Thanks for advice / comments! Actually, if anyone has a precise drawing to replace my amateurish attempt; that will be most welcome!

Good comments and caveats! However, when it comes to sprinkling water on top of the roof, what could really go wrong? Roofs are made to withstand repeated rain after all, no? Sprinkling the roof has not come into my questioning so far, as I had the whole roof redesigned (I did the design myself, I am a bit of an amateur architect!), and that included : more space between the roof and the hanging ceiling for better ventilation + roofing sheets with insulation layers + insulation rolls laid over the hanging ceiling before closing again. That made a huge difference to the ambient temperature in the living space. My problem now is (again) : the walls and especially the windows get hot and radiate a lot of heat inside of the house.

Hmmmm, I studied physics to quite a high level when I was younger - actually coming from a rather good background in maths. Various types of mechanics (celestial, thermo, acoustics, wave propagation, even quantum, applications to civil engineering etc), also chemistry (organic and mineral) plus a bit of chemical engineering and elements of metallurgy. Obviously, I have forgotten a lot over the decades since my studies, but nevertheless it is quite funny to read your comment. Please don't jump on me for writing a bit too fast and forgetting to mention that the most important cooling factor is the evaporation process. Such as we all experience through sweating, for example.

That's an interesting idea. Water is known as a great help against the heat. It's an excellent conductor, so absorbs energy (heat) very quickly away from the surfaces it comes in touch with. I don't know how easy it is to install such a thing however. Some studying ahead for me, I guess!

Thanks! I tried my best to navigate this issue and, frankly, it's not straightforward! I like your line "So it is possible to make an inexpensive paint of barium sulphate and reduce the heat gain by a very substantial amount. you can have any colour you like as long as it’s white." So, yes, white paint (and the barium sulphate nano particle type you mention). I guess it's the outside that should be painted, rather than the inside of the house? Sorry for asking, but I'm not an expert and I would prefer to avoid assuming too quickly, and then wasting my time (especially if 30 coats are required!). What do you think of tiling the exterior of the walls? I guess that would add to the thermal mass and possibly be useful somehow?